This particular #winestudio is a celebration of itself. I had an opportunity for a conversation with Katarina Andersson of Wines of Italy and we hit it off immediately. She is a true lover of Italy - highlighting those smaller producers that are the true backbone of the Italian wine scene - many family-owned and always so generous of wine, time and knowledge.

Most of my time prior to a #winestudio program is researching: the winery, people, the wine, the region, and typically the writing comes easy. This time however, I had a difficult time organizing my thoughts and notes for our program; Not because of any issues but because the researching awoke some of my own Italian family memories. So this particular program is quite bittersweet for me, the #50 holding very special things.

The Sieni FamilyThe Sieni family is celebrating 50 Harvests of Montefioralle in grand style--watch the video!It reminds me of my own family, the older men talking amongst themselves, in their quasi Italian-English mix, representing both the part of them that was Italy then and the US today. Azienda Agricola Montefioralle is a true family-run winery, with only 5 acres of vineyards, one of the smallest wineries among the consortium of Chianti Classico producers.This small quantity production enables the Sieni family to take care of every little detail in order to produce high quality Chianti Classico. And yes, this is a short amount of time especially coming from the “old world” but the history of the area is ancient.

Right Place, Right TimeKatarina had the opportunity toattend the press conference of the Associazione Viticoltori Montefioralle, an association of wine producers in the area around the village Montefioralle, a small hamlet not far from Greve in Chianti, with a history that can be traced back to the Roman era. The conference centered around finding that specific “terroir” that is indicative of the Montefioralle area. A calling card if you will: an artist’s brush, a musician’s note or a dancer’s step.

They’ve identified a “peculiarity of the soil” and a “microclimate” which is said to give the Sangiovese grapes their unique character. Their mission is to produce wines “con carattere“! The Montefioralle area, from a geological point of view, is different than other areas in Tuscany. The possibility of a glacier could be the reason why there is up to 50% loam in certain plots around the little hamlet. Montefioralle wines have been described as elegant, with softer tannins than other Chianti Classico wines, with refined notes of fruit, and a bit of spice.

The Siena family’s vineyards, the winery, the cellar, and the shop are all located in the small medieval hamlet of Montefioralle-where there is approximately 70 inhabitants! It has become a history-buff and wine-tasting dream!

Some words tooling around the internet describing Azienda Agricola Montefioralle:-- A gem amongst the grapes! | A great experience! | Fabulous little winery! | Superb wine tasting and visit | Small slice of heaven --You get the idea.

The first harvest of the Sieni family was in 1968. It was only in the 1990s that the family could acquire the winery when the Church decided to sell off the vineyards. This year it will be 50 years since their first harvest at the Montefioralle winery and they are celebrating in grand style, with us! Click here for information on all of their festivities, leading up to their September harvest.

Join #winestudio and Wines of Italy Live Stream on the below dates and time as we discuss Montefioralle with Lorenzo Sieni!